Why Do I Talk?

This question is a standing joke between my sister and I. Why? Because we don’t know why we talk because nobody listens.

Anything I told someone today is a repeat of yesterday.

If my husband tells me he’s going to the grocery store tomorrow, he will then ask if there’s anything I need. I reply with the one or two items I need. Usually there’s nothing because I stop at the grocery store a couple of times a week. In the event I need something, I tell him what it is. He replies, ‘OK’.

The next morning I’m sitting at my desk and my cellphone rings. My husband calls every morning to say hi and see what’s going on for the day. Before he hangs up, he asks what it is again I wanted from the grocery store. Since he knows he’s got a bad memory, he should have written it down. Why do I talk?

I make appointments for my boss with customers for him to meet. The appointments are documented on the Outlook calendar. If a customer tells me that he needs to ring the side doorbell instead of the front doorbell, I write that in the notes. If the customer tells me that they have dogs and would like to secure them before he arrives, they will ask that he call them when he’s on his way. I write that in the notes. Out of the four to six appointments that he has daily, there is at least one who gives me special instructions that I document in the notes. So this is a regular occurrence.

Before printing out the calendar appointment for my boss, I use the highlight feature for these special instructions so he can see them. Then I print out the appointment, in color, so the bright yellow highlighted notes are visible. He comes back after the appointment and tells me he didn’t know he was to go to the side door or that he was supposed to call while on his way. Why do I talk?

I call my mother 3 times a week to check up on her. During the conversation I may mention that I’m getting my things together for an upcoming trip or I met friends for dinner the night before, etc. Then she asks me why I didn’t tell her this before. I did. I told her this 2 days ago when I called. She denies I did. Why do I talk?

Since I have power of attorney for my mom, her doctor’s office calls once a month with the results of her blood test. She goes monthly for bloodwork because she’s on blood thinners. Each month they call and leave a message on my mother’s machine asking her to call back to get her results. Mom then sends me an email asking me to call the doctor’s office and get the results. Mom doesn’t like talking to the girls from the doctors office because they talk too loud and too fast…even though she used to ask them to talk slower and quieter. Why does she talk?

Anyway, after I get the email from my mom about calling the doctor’s office, I make the call. When I get the gal on the phone with the test results, I mention that they’re supposed to call me with the results and not my mom. The gal always checks the computer and says, “You’re right…sorry about that.” This has been going on each month for over a year and each month my mom gets the call, I get the email, and I tell the doctors office that I’m supposed to be called. Why do I talk?

My granddaughter (age 12 – straight A student since first grade) is standing up in a wedding in May. Her dress was ordered before Christmas and I’ve been asking her almost weekly if the dress came. The answer is always no. Since my granddaughter spends every Tuesday afternoon with me and we have dinner together, this is pretty much a week question about the dress. Yesterday (Tuesday) I asked about the dress again…because it really should have been here by now. She told me it came in a month ago. I asked why she didn’t tell me this a month ago when I’ve been asking every week, if not every other week. “I forgot” she replied. I needed to know this because if the dress needed alterations, I was going to take her in to get this done. Why do I talk?

This goes on every day with almost everyone I know. As a society, are people not listening when others talk? Are there so many other things on our minds that most things people say go in one ear and out the other?

I’ve been told several times that I am the exception to the rule. Anyone who asks me for a recipe, to meet them for breakfast / lunch / dinner at a restaurant, to pick up something from the store, and anything else, I immediately write it down so I don’t forget. If I don’t have paper or pen, I send myself an email from my cellphone. Since I check my emails daily, I will see it.

But it doesn’t stop there. I don’t just scroll thru those email reminders. I take care of each one immediately and then delete it.

This is the same courtesy I want extended to me.